Memorial Day is a United States holiday that commemorates U.S. men and women who have died in military service to their country.
In recent years American citizens have increasingly become the target of terrorist attacks. Hundreds of innocent Americans have been killed and wounded in senseless violence, to say nothing of the billions of dollars in economic harm. The lost lives, grievous injuries, and shattered families left in the wake of these terrorist attacks have touched all our hearts. This post is to let you, the families of those that gave their all, know that I and many like me honor your loved ones and we will always remember them.
My son served his country as a Marine. His Drill Instructor at Parris Island was a great man named Staff Sgt. Phillip A. Jordan. His buddies called him “Gump.” He was 42 years old. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Camp Lejeune, N.C. He was killed in action in Iraq on March 23, 2003, near Nasiriyah after encountering Iraqi troops that were pretending to surrender.
“He loved the Marines. He said that’s what made him what he is,” his wife said. “If he were here, he’d say he died doing what he was supposed to be doing.”
There is no adequate way to honor this hero. But being a hero is what Marines do better than anyone else. The safest place in the world is right behind a platoon of Marines.
Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don’t have that problem. – Ronald Reagan, U.S. President; 1985
I watched the flag pass by one day,
It fluttered in the breeze;
A young Marine saluted it,
And then he stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform,
So young, so tall, so proud;
With hair cut square and eyes alert,
He’d stand out in any crowd.
I thought… how many men like him
Had fallen through the years?
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers’ tears?
How many pilots’ planes shot down
How many died at sea
How many foxholes were soldiers’ graves
No, Freedom is not Free.
I heard the sound of Taps one night,
When everything was still;
I listened to the bugler play,
And felt a sudden chill;
I wondered just how many times
That Taps had meant “Amen”
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend;
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands.
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea,
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No. Freedom is not Free!
- ©Copyright 1981 by CDR Kelly Strong, USCG (Ret).
Freedom is not free, but the US Marine Corps will pay most of your share. Find one today and tell them, “thank you”.
Memorial Day, Marine, Phillip A. Jordan
1 response so far ↓
1 Richard Lowry // May 28, 2007 at 7:45 pm
Staff Sergeant Jordan gave his life in one of the bloodiest battles of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was killed in an all out fight with the enemy. No Iraqi feigned surrender.
You can read his story and the story of the other seventeen Marines and eleven soldiers who died on March 23, 2003 in the battle for An Nasiriyah is “Marines in the Garden of Eden.”
Let us not forget any of the twenty-nine Americans who died in the first major battle of the war:
1. SPC Jamaal R. Addison, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
22, Roswell, Ga., March 23, 2003
2. SPC Edward J. Anguiano, KIA in 507th ambush
3rd Combat Support Battalion
24, Brownsville, Texas, March 23, 2003
3. Sgt. Michael E. Bitz, KIA in C206
2nd Assault Amphibious Battalion
31, Ventura, Calif., March 23, 2003
4. Lance Corporal Thomas A. Blair “Broken Arrow” KIA
2nd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion
24, Broken Arrow, OK, March 23, 2003
5. Lance Corporal Brian Rory Buesing, KIA north of Saddam Canal
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
20, Cedar Key, Fla., March 23, 2003
6. Sgt. George Edward Buggs, KIA in 507th ambush
3rd Forward Support Battalion
31, Barnwell, S.C., March 23, 2003,
7. Pfc. Tamario D. Burkett, KIA
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion. 2nd Marines
21, Buffalo, N.Y., March 23, 2003
8. Cpl. Kemaphoom A. Chanawongse, KIA
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
22, Waterford, Conn., March 23, 2003
9. Lance Corporal Donald “John” Cline, Jr., KIA in C208
3rd Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
21, Sparks, Nevada, March 23, 2003
10. Master Sgt. Robert J. Dowdy, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
38, Cleveland, OH, March 23, 2003
11. PVT Ruben Estrella-Soto, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
18, El Paso, Texas, March 23, 2003
12. Lance Corporal David K. Fribley, KIA north of the Saddam Canal
3rd Platoon (?), Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
26, Lee, Fla., March 23, 2003
13. Cpl. Jose A. Garibay, WIA north of Saddam Canal, KIA in C208
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
21, Costa Mesa, Calif., March 23, 2003
14. Pvt. Jonathan L. Gifford, WIA north of Saddam Canal, KIA in C208
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
20, Macon, Ill., March 23, 2003
15. Cpl. Jorge A. Gonzalez, WIA north of Saddam Canal, KIA in C208
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
20, Los Angeles, March 23, 2003
16. Pvt. Nolen R. Hutchings, KIA
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
19, Boiling Springs, S.C., March 23, 2003
17. PFC Howard Johnson II, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
21, Mobile, Alabama, March 23, 2003
18. Staff Sergeant Phillip A. Jordan, KIA north of Saddam Canal
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
42, Brazoria, Texas, March 23, 2003
19. SPC James M. Kiehl, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
22, Comfort, Texas, March 23, 2003
20. Chief Warrant Officer 2 Johnny Mata, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
35, El Paso, Texas, March 23, 2003
21. Corporal Patrick R. Nixon, KIA in C208
Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
21, Nashville, Tenn., March 23, 2003
22. Pfc. Lori Ann Piestewa, WIA in 507th ambush, died as POW
507th Maintenance Company
23, Tuba City, Ariz., March 23, 2003
23. 2nd Lieutenant Frederick E. Pokorney Jr., KIA north of Saddam Canal
1st Battalion, 10th Marines, Forward Observer for Charlie Company, 1/2 Marines
31, Nye, Nevada, March 23, 2003
24. Sgt. Brendon C. Reiss, KIA in C206
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
23, Casper, Wyo., March 23, 2003
25. Cpl. Randal Kent Rosacker, KIA in or near C203
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
21, San Diego, March 23, 2003, Iraq
26. Private Brandon Ulysses Sloan, KIA in 507th ambush
507th Maintenance Company
19, Bedford, Ohio, March 23, 2003
27. Lance Cpl. Thomas J. Slocum, KIA in or near C203
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
22, Adams, Colo., March 23, 2003
28. Sergeant Donald Ralph Walters CAPTURED during 507th ambush then murdered.
507th Maintenance Company
33, Salem, Ore., March 23, 2003. Iraq
29. Lance Cpl. Michael J. Williams, KIA in C208
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines
31, Phoenix, Ariz., March 23, 2003, Iraq